Plasma support unit



June 29, 1965 A. D. KARAPITA PLASMA SUPPORT UNIT Filed Aug. 4, 1961United States Patent O 3,191,904 PLASMA SUPPORT UNIT Alexander D.Karapita, lCanadian Research and Development Foundation, 1434 Queen St.W., Toronto 3, Ontario, Canada Filed Ang. 4, 1961, Ser. No. 129,440 3Claims. (Cl. 248-333) This invention relates to telescopic ceilingiixtures, and more particularly to telescopic lixtures utilized forsupporting containers of plasma and intravenous fluids.

It is required that such lixtures support containers of plasma andintravenous fluids in an inverted manner, thereby permitting thecontents of the containers to flow downwardly by gravity to the patient.

r 3,191,9@4 Ice Patented June 29, 1955 13 has fastened a bushing 14threaded to receive a stub It is conventional practice to utilizecastered floor i stands, which have proven to be only partiallysatisfactory because of their bulk and weight. Another disadvantage ofthe conventional lioor stand is that it is sometimes knocked overresulting in the loss of the iluidbeing dispensed onto the floor,thereby worsening the patients condition. s

It is an object of this invention to provide a plasma support unit whichmay be suspended from the ceilingby a stationaryhook, or a travellinghook, thereby replacing the conventional iloor stand. v

It is another object of this invention lto provide a plasma support unitwhich will be telescopic, requiring the use of only one hand for thelengthening or shortening thereof. t

Itis another object of this invention to provide a plasma support unitwhich can be displaced from its vertical suspended position to anangular position, and locked in that position for the purpose of holdingthe assembly clear of .a patients bed and operating table.

These and other objects and features of this invention will becomeapparent when taken in conjunction with the following Ydrawings inwhich: s

FIG. l'is a vertical elevation of the plasma support unit suspended froma ceiling and shown in its extended position.

FIG. 2 .is a composite vertical elevation of the plasma support unitillustrated in FIG. l, showing the iixture in vertical position and, inphantom, the fixture moved into an inclined position.

FIG. 3 is a vertical, part sectional elevation of the plasma supportunit illustrated lin FIG. 1, showing particularly the constructionthereof.

FIG. 4 is a vertical, fragmentary, sectional elevation of the plasmasupport unit illustrated in FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a fractional perspective view of the upper end of the plasmasupport unit illustrated in FIG. 1 showing particularly an alternativemethod of suspending the unit, through track and carrier members, foradded The invention consists essentially in a telescopic assemblyincluding a central rod removably suspended from a hooked ceilingsupport, a tube and an outer sheath concentrically mounted about thecentral rod and normally held in locking engagement with the 4centralrod in any adjusted position thereon, the locking means consisting of aseries of spring lingers on the end of the tube normally held in lockingcontact with the central rod by pressure from the sheath, and a springgrip means associated with the central rod and the sheath for effectingrelease of the locking contact pressure between the spring fingers ofthe tube and the central rod. The invention also consists of means tohold the telescopic assembly in any angular position inclined from thevertical, the said means comprising a link connected at one end to theceiling support and at the other end to a locking sleeve slidablymounted on the sheath of the telescopic assembly.

rod 15 of restricted diameter, which extends out of lthe handle 12through a hole in the bottom of the handle. A compression coil spring 16is mounted inside the handle 12 and bears against the shoulder formed bythe bushing 14.

' At its upper end the sheath 10 is formed with an in-V wardlyprojecting lip 17. The tube 13 has at its upper end a plurality ofcircumferentially disposed iingers 18 ilared inwardly at 19 at theirouter extremities.

A rod 20 (which may also consist of a tube) is slidably mounted withinthe tube 13 and projects beyond the lingers 1S in all its positions, itsretraction into the tube v13 being limited by the lower end of the rod20 abutting the inner end of the stub rod 15.

The above described arrangement is such that the spring 16 urges thetube 13 upwardly and its ngers 18 engage with their ared portions 19 thelip 17 of the sheath 10. The fingers are thus pressed against the rod 20and hold it in position by frictional engagement.

A lever 21 is provided to release the fingers and allow rod 20 toslidefreely within the tube 13. The lever 21 Vhas a main portion aligned withand spaced from the handle 12, and a smaller portion-.22.at a rightangle vto the main portion. The portion 22 has a hole 23 `looselysurrounding the outwardly extending portion of stub rod 15. A pin 24traverses the stub rod and'rests in a groove on the outer face of leverportion 22.

V When the main portion of lever 21 is pulled towards the handle 12(FIG. 4) the smaller portion 22` bearing against the outer edge of thebottom of the handle which acts asV a Vfulcrurn point 25, pulls .thestub r-od -15 down"- wardly against the pressure `of spring 116 and withit the tube I13, and causes the iingerportions 19 to become disengagedfrom the lip y17, so that .the fingers 1S no l-onger press against therod Ztl. In .this condition the relative Vposition of rod 20 and sheathlll can be adjusted telescopically. Any slack in the lever 21 can beremoved by turning back the handle 12 and readjusting lthe position of-nut 11.

The sheath 10 has mounted thereon a device for hanging the containers,said device consisting of a ring 26 secured to the sheath 16 by means ofa set screw 27 and having fastened thereto a pair of opposite arms 2S.The arms 28 are shown in dotted lines in FIG. 3 turned 90 to the planeof the figure. At their ends the arms 28 are formed with hooks 29. Thecontainers are hung from the hooks 29 in an upside down position byconventional means (not shown). In addition a hook 30 is screwed intothe outer end of stub rod l5.

The rod 20 has at its lower end a ilange 31 which engages an inwardlyprojecting annular rib 32 of tube 13 to prevent complete disengagementof the rod from the tube. At its upper end the rod 20 has a shorttransverse bar 33 which sits in a hooked tubular support 34 permanentlysecured to the ceiling by a screw 35. The support 34 has a suitablerecess for receiving the bar 33. The face opening of the recess permitsinsertion of the bar 33 edgewise at an angle but is not large enough topermit removal of the bar 33 facewise, so that the bar 33 can only beremoved by moving it upwardly in the recess at a certain inclination,moving it outwardly at the bottom and then downwardly. This arrangementprevents the fixture from falling olf the support accidentally.

A sleeve 36, threaded intermediate its ends and provided with downwardlyprojecting iingers 37, wedge-shaped in longitudinal section, is slidablymounted on the sheath 10 'above the ring 26. A knurled sleeve-nut 3Sengages the thread -of sleeve 36. The nut 33 has its lower inner walliiared inwardly to engage the fingers 37 and tighten them against thesheath 10 when the nut 38 is turned upwardly. The sleeve 36 has `abracket 39 on which is pivotally mounted one end of a link 40, the otherend of which is bent and may be attached to a hook 41 secured near theupper end of support 34 on the side thereof opposite that on which opensthe recess.

The fixture may swing about the lower edge of bar 33 in the plane ofFGS. 2 and 3 and can be held in an inclined position, as shown in FIG.2, by fastening the sleeve 36 on the support 34.

As mentioned above the invention is particularly useful in hospitals forholding containers during transfusions. In practice a ceiling support 34is mounted at every place where a transfusion may have to be made, forexample above each bed in wards and above the operating table inoperating rooms. Whenever a transfusion is needed a fixture is hooked tothe support. When it is desired to get the fixture out of the Waytemporarily, for example while the patient is being prepared, the xturemay be pushed up to the ceiling. When the actual transfusion begins thefixture is then pulled down to a suitable level.

The possibility of retaining the fixture in an inclined position is ofparticular utility when the bed or table has to be moved about a greatdeal, for example in the operating room, or when .the patient is `beingtransferred from the operating table or bed to a stretcher.

Referring to FIG. 5, a track 50, of substantially elongated, tubularconfiguration, formed of rigid materials, such as, for instance, steel,aluminum or the like, is slotted along its lower face 51, therebyproviding a running surface 52. A movable support carrier 5.3, iscarried by a plurality of substantially friction free Wheels 54, adaptedto move freely along running surface 52 of truck 50.

A support 55 similar in design to support 34 is attached to supportcarrier 53 by conventional means, for the hanging thereon of the plasmasupport unit, the contour of track 50 restraining any transverse oraxial movement of support carrier 53.

Track 50 is adapted to be mounted by conventional fastening means by theinsertion of screws or the like through a plurality of holes 56 throughface 57 of track 50.

The general design of the individual parts of the inver1- tion asexplained above may be varied in accordance with the requirements inregard to manufacture and production thereof, while still remainingwithin the spirit and principle of the invention, Without prejudicingthe novelty thereof.

The embodiments of this invention in which an exclusive property orprivilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1l. A plasma support unit including a ceiling support, an outer tubularsheath having means for holding objects, an inner rod slidably mountedwithin said sheath and pivotally mounted at one end in said ceilingsupport, means providing a plurality of iingers surrounding said rod,means in said sheath engageable with said fingers and adapted to pressthe said fingers against said rods, means to urge said finger means andsaid iinger engaging means longitudinally against each other to fastentogether said rod and said sheath in their axially adjusted position,means to hold said ceiling fixture in said ceiling support in a variableposition inclined from the vertical, said means for holding lthe saidceiling fixture in an inclined position comprising a sleeve slidablymounted on said sheath, said sleeve having a plurality of fingers and anouter thread, a nut mounted on said thread and engageable with saidfingers to press them against said sheath and a link pivoted to saidsleeve and hooked to said overhead support.

2. A plasma support unit as claimed in claim 1 wherein said objectholding means comprises a pair of hooks, located on opposite sides ofsaid support unit, adapted to receive transfusion containers.

3. A plasma support unit as claimed in claim 1 in which said ceilingsupport includes a tubular track member for attachment to a ceiling andhaving a longitudinal slot running substantially centrally through thelower face thereof, a support carrier within said track member,

VWheels supporting said carrier enabling said carrier to run freelylongitudinally within said track member, and suspension means dependingfrom said carrier in cooperation with said securable means at one end ofsaid inner rod for the support of said fixture.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 224,442 2/ 80Kintz 248-336 1,065,155 6/13 McCanse 248--323 1,111,623 9/14 Teasdale248-337 3,006,481 10/61 Gussack 211-117 CLAUDE A. LE ROY, PrimaryExaminer.

ROBERT C. RIORDON, Examiner.

1. A PLASMA SUPPORT UNIT INCLUDING A CEILING SUPPORT, AN OUTER TUBULARSHEATH HAVING MEANS FOR HOLDING OBJECTS, AN INNER ROD SLIDABLY MOUNTEDWITHIN SAID SHEATH AND PIVOTALLY MOUNTED AT ONE END IN SAID CEILINGSUPPORT, MEANS PROVIDING A PLURALITY OF FINGERS SURROUNDING SAID RODMEANS IN SAID SHEATH ENGAGEABLE WITH SAID FINGERS AND ADAPTED TO PRESSTHE SAID FINGERS AGAINST SAID RODS, MEANS TO URGE SAID FINGER MEANS ANDSAID FINGER ENGAGING MEANS LONGITUDINALLY AGAINST EACH OTHER TO FASTENTOGETHER SAID ROD AND SAID SHEATH IN THEIR AXIALLY ADJUSTED POSITION,MEANS TO HOLD SAID CEILING FIXTURE IN SAID CEILING SUPPORT IN A VARIABLEPOSITION INCLINED FROM THE VERTICAL, SAID MEANS FOR HOLDING THE SAIDCEILING FIXTURE IN AN INCLINED POSI-